My journey with Tai Chi started in 1979 when I was studying at Taiyuan University of Technology (TUT) in China. One morning I noticed a group of senior and middle-aged academics practising Tai Chi with a master on a basket ball court next to our students’ dormitory building. Later on I learnt that the master was Yang, Zen-Duo, the fourth generation of Yang’s Family and the son of master Yang, Chang-Fu who was one of the most famous martial artists of the last century in China.
Knowing about the benefit of Tai Chi for one’s health, I longed to learn Tai Chi only because I wanted to teach my father who had been ill since I was a little girl. I wanted to help him improve his health through Tai Chi. So, I waited there patiently until they finished their practice and asked Master Yang if I could be allowed to join them. I was so happy when he said “yes”! I became the youngest member of the TUT Tai Chi group.

At that time the general perception of public about Tai Chi was that it was an exercise for older people. So, as the only young person in the Tai Chi group, many of my classmates teased me for lacking stamina for more rigorous exercises. To be honest, at that time I did not expect Tai Chi to make a difference for me, a healthy young person. My motive for learning Tai Chi was purely to help my father. However, after practising Tai Chi for some time, I noticed that my immune system improved significantly. As a result, I rarely caught a cold or a flu in winter (the maximum temperature in the winter in Taiyuan City stays below 0oC for about two months, and I used to catch either a cold or a flu almost every 2-3 weeks during winter before that time). Not to mention that Tai Chi transformed my father from a sick man to a healthy and active Tai Chi practitioner and an Instructor after his retirement.

It has been 30 years since then, my health has benefited greatly from practising Tai Chi. Particularly since I joined our Celestial Tai Chi College about 5 years ago and started training directly under the guidance of Grand Master Eng Chor Khor, my overall fitness level has increased greatly, and I feel my body flexibility and concentration have been gradually restored to a level as good as almost 30 years ago. I also feel more relaxed, which helps me cope well with my daily work.  In a word, Tai Chi has not only given my father a good quality of life in his later years, but also provided me with a lifelong healthy and happy lifestyle.

Yan Ding, Tai Chi Instructor
Mulgrave Tai Chi Centre